Quincy Drug Court graduation shows the gentler side of a community courtroom

A hybrid of law enforcement and intensive rehab and recovery, Quincy's drug court is a special weekly court that has operated since 2001 under the leadership of Judge Diane Moriarty, diverting hundreds of drug offenders from time behind bars.

QUINCY – Judges are known for their reserve and distance, so it’s more than a little weird to watch one extend her arms and embrace a recovering drug addict who would have shown up in her courtroom as a defendant.

But then again, Quincy Drug Court is no ordinary facet of the state judiciary system, and Thursday’s graduation ceremony was a unique showcase of things you just don’t expect to see in an urban courtroom – like lots of tenderness and love.

Quincy Mayor Thomas Koch helped set that tone, telling the five graduates seated near the front of a courtroom jammed with more than 100 guests that he had just been listening to the Beatles song “The Long and Winding Road.”

“I know that many times you have been alone and cried,” Koch said. “But today I hope you realize you are not alone. The community, your family are with you.”

A hybrid of law enforcement and intensive rehab and recovery, Quincy Drug Court is a special weekly court session that has operated since 2001 under the leadership of Judge Diane Moriarty, diverting hundreds of drug offenders from time behind bars.

Over the course of 18 months, the men and women accepted into drug court also get into treatment, find jobs and earn money for restitution and court fees.

The behavior modification program is geared for people who aren’t helped by medication or deterred by incarceration, said coordinator Jo Rothman.

“You’ve succeeded in taking back your lives and demonstrated that the courts can offer you direction in your life,” Paula Carey, chief justice of the Massachusetts Trial Courts, told the four men and one woman waiting to get their diplomas.

The drug court graduation took place against a backdrop of a rising number of opiate-related overdoses and deaths across the state and the region, a fact stressed by Norfolk County District Attorney Michael Morrissey.

“The largest single problem we face is drugs,” he said. “Sixty-one people died of overdoses in Norfolk County last year, and it is climbing.”

That harsh reality fueled much of the gratitude that graduates expressed. Looking back on her time in court more than a decade ago, Gretchen Picken specifically thanked Quincy Judge Mark Coven for saving her life by guiding her into the program.

Picken, a former resident of Rockland, Humarock and Hull, told of her descent into drugs and alcohol.

“At 23, I was introduced to heroin. I stuck a needle in my arm and didn’t get sober until my late 30s,” she said. “My life spiraled out of control. I was unemployed and unemployable, and I took to shoplifting to support my habit. …I tore my family apart.”

Page 2 of 2 - Picken just finished earning a degree at the University of Massachusetts at Boston and is starting a new job soon.

The newly minted graduates followed Picken in addressing the full courtroom.

They were all nervous, and Moriarty gently encouraged them and suggested they take deep breaths to calm themselves.

“You can do it, Charlie,” she said to graduate Charles Capone.

Michael Cathcart of Weymouth said drug court got him sober and made him a better dad through a course specifically for fathers.

“The biggest thing is being able to be back with my kids. They go to sleep happy, and they don’t have to worry about the cops coming at 3 in the morning, looking for Dad,” he said.

When the graduation ceremony ended, Cathcart headed outside to smoke a cigarette and was intercepted by Jackie Shea, a clinician at the High Point Treatment Center in Brockton, where she worked with the 29-year-old graduate.

Shea grabbed Cathcart and hugged him as her eyes welled with tears.

“I never thought he’d make it, just like my own child who didn’t make it,” Shea said. “I love this kid. It makes my job worthwhile.”

Shea said her son, David, died six years ago from a drug overdose. He was 20 years old.

Cathcart smiled as she hugged him, welcoming her affection and pride.

Chris Burrell may be reached at cburrell@ledger.com. Follow him on Twitter @Burrell_Ledger.